Felipão is therefore still without a win in his second stint as Brazil boss, following last week's draw with Italy and February's defeat to England.

However, the 64-year-old was determined to put on a brave face after the game against Russia and focused on the positives.

He said: "I think that from the game against Italy to this one we kept at the same level, but we were playing against a well-organised [Russia].

"They kept the ball quite a well and because of a lot of factors we maybe let that goal in because they marked higher that the Italians and they pressed, too.

"But what I really liked was that towards the end our team had a good reaction. They didn't get desperate, they kept their heads, worked the ball and scored the goal.

"We haven't evolved as much as from the England game to the Italy game, but we are on the right path. Everybody knows there are no shortcuts for success. You need to go in stages.

"We have to go through every stage to reach the final goal. In each stage we try to add some small improvements - someone comes in, someone changes position."

Brazil’s next international friendly is with Chile on April 24, following a game against Boliva on April 6 in memory of a young fan killed during a Copa Libertadores tie between Corinthians and San Jose in February.